A Case of Integrated Architectural and Structural Innovation in Timber Construction

The new Historical Museum at the Oberamteistrasse Reutlingen represents a significant architectural and structural landmark. It involves complex engineering challenges, particularly in stabilizing adjacent historical buildings and integrating the museum into the existing urban fabric while presenting a modern interpretation of the historic half-timbered structures. The previous structure should be replaced by the new museum building which results in a non-parallel envelope and hyperbolic paraboloid roof surfaces. The parametric approach to the design allowed flexibility in the planning process, adapting to the unique challenges posed by the integration of the new structure with the existing historical buildings. It demonstrates how modern design can be sensitively and innovatively integrated into historical contexts, offering insights into the future of urban architectural development. This Paper will set a focus on how a variety of digital tools were linked together in a centralized modelling environment to stream data continuously between disciplines and design iterations. A key concept in the design methodology was the separation within the parametric modelling of structurally relevant form fit joints and visible strut intersections in partial models with partial automated sub-scripts. This cascading, semi-automated multi-scripted modelling approach enabled a specific intervention at any time on all individual geometries without recomputing the entire workflow from the beginning. Therefore, the workflow should be seen as a continuous extension in data storage within a tolerance and level of detail, to overcome parallel models for manufacturing at the end of the process.